Trapped in cold darkness all Hawkmoth can do is remember how he had got here again. He had thought no one would realise but he had been foolish to think the Goddess of the Underworld would be unaware of his true identity.
"Who's there?" Hawkmoth looks around when he hears noise in the great expanse of the quiet darkness that had surrounded him for years.
"Excuse me, is anyone there?"
His eyes narrow when a young human man comes into view. "Who are you?" He wanted to know how a human was in this part of the underworld. He was the only being who could survive to be here, it was punishment form the God's.
"Nice to meet you, I'm Felix" the man smiles and rubs the back of his neck "You know halfway up this mountain I was climbing I got caught in an avalanche and buried under a ton of snow, I tried to stick it out a few days but my body gave up" he laughs "I was pretty new to dying and all that you see, I completely lost it and burned too much energy"
Hawkmoth isn't even listening fully to the human. 'A human in spirit form, how many years has it been since I've last seen one? Their frailty hasn't changed at least"
"So here's the thing"
Hawkmoths eyes widen as the human speaks loudly.
He points to the shining light in the distance "It's high time that I passed on but I have one last regret, I got into an argument with my mother just before I left the house and it was a really stupid argument so if I had known those words were going to be my last I would have picked much nicer ones"
Hawkmoth raises an eyebrow wanting the human to get to the point.
"I'm sure my mother will think the same and start to blame herself for it. That's why I don't want that fight to be the last time I talk to her, so if you don't mind doing me a favour, would you please let me my mother know I'm sorry"
'The utter idiocy of these humans how will he gain anything from passing on a message?' Hawkmoth smirks 'I remember now how easily fooled they are'
"I cannot do that" Hawkmoth says "Some bastards took my body and all I'm left with is my soul that clings to these rocks" he slightly lies.
Felix frowns and looks to his feet. "I see…" he looks up with determined eyes "Then take my body, it's deep in the snow and completely stuck but maybe you could still use it, will you then fulfil my request?" he smiles hopefully.
Hawkmoth grins 'Perfect I can leave this realm thanks to the idiocy of a human' "Sure"
He awakes from his dreams of the past to be assaulted by the cold darkness yet again. It almost feels suffocating to him.
He gasps for air. The darkness twisting around him. Not even a shred of light.
'No! The darkness has trapped me. Don't tell me…was everything up to now a dream? A figment of my imagination conjured in this eternal darkness…It can't be!' He panics reaching a hand up 'I can't bear staying in this cold darkness anymore!'
Then rays of a white light spill in. He pauses. A figure stands there. "There you are, Felix, I've come to save you!"
He breaths heavily for a few moments trying to recollect any bit of sanity he had left in him. He shakily pushes himself up from the stone ground. "Wh-Where am I?" his eyes dart around "What is happening to me?"
The red-haired boy throws his arms out "You're in Juleka's dungeon!" he exclaims. He places his hands on his hips, frowning. "She locked you up here!" he tilts his head "Don't you remember?"
Felix grunts as he stands up.
"It was real chore finding this place, you know" Nathanael smirks "But do you want to know how I found you here?" he doesn't wait for an answer holding out the talisman proudly "Well, check this out, it was this special talisman created by me, Nathanael, myself!" his eyes widen when Felix suddenly wraps him in a hug. "Uhh…"
"This warmth…"
Nathanael pushes him away and backs into the wall "I don't know what your deal is but my heart is already set on the kitsune Lila…"
Felix's eyes narrow "Lila?"
Nathanael blinks at his strange reaction to Lila's name. "What's wrong? You look kind of pale" Felix just pokes him in the forehead. Nathanael rubs it while frowning.
"You should have escaped this place by yourself" he mutters walking on.
They hide behind a wall as Nathanael glances around the side to see if the corridor is clear. "Why did you trouble yourself to come and save me?" Felix asks "After all you should have no problems returning to the surface on your own, right?"
Nathanael's eyes rounded. "I don't actually have a reason for saving you"
Felix frowns.
"Now we're going to have to be quiet to try and sneak out, otherwise if we're caught they might turn us into skeletons!" Nathanael runs on out.
"Skeletons?" Felix shakes his head. 'Honestly, Humans are impossible to comprehend' he follows behind Nathanael at a slower pace. 'They're idiots'
"Oh my, the lucky mallet certainly isn't a divine tool for nothing!" Duusu chirps. "We can grow bigger or smaller whenever we please!" Nooroo says.
Duusu holds the mallet out in her hands "But who knew this was still at the shrine?"
"We were entrusted by Lady Chloe to give it back to Lord Ali but it seems such a waste to do that" Nooroo mused.
"We could say it got lost if anyone asks" Duusu grins.
Then there was a knock at the door. The spirits rushed to answer it. Outside the door stood a fluffy white dog carrying a letter in its mouth. It placed it on the doorstep and barked up at them.
"It is Riceball, Lady Hanae's pet dog" Nooroo states.
"I wonder what she would be writing to us about" Duusu bends down to pick up the letter.
"Lady Lila!" The spirits shriek bursting into the living room where Lila was reading a book and startling her. Her face twisted when she saw their human-sized forms courtesy of the lucky mallet.
"Change back, you look disgusting!" she grabbed the mallet and chucked it at them. In a poof of smoke they were normal sized again.
"Lady Lila!" Duusu cries. "We received a letter from Lady Hanae!"
Nooroo continues "It is Lord Nathanael, he has gone missing in the underworld!"
Lila's eyes widen and then a dark shadow passes over her face. "Where?"
"No one has any clue where he is down there?" Duusu shrieks.
Lila's hair nearly stands on edge "Snake" she hisses.
"Aurore was tasked with something else and was separated from Lord Nathanael" Nooroo responds.
Lila's face contorts in rage. "That fool!" she clenches her fists "I only had him go to the divine assembly so what is he doing down in the underworld?"
Nooroo and Duusu glance between each other eyes filled with worry.
"Even the deities of the surface rarely travel there" Lila starts to pace "At worst you might never return!" Her mouth draws in a tight line as she thinks of never seeing Nathanael again. "We are leaving!" she exclaims.
She turns to the shrine spirits determination sparked in her eyes. "Make the preparations quickly!"
The spirits gasp "You are going to the underworld?"
"Of course" Her eyes narrow "I'll bring that idiot back here. Myself"
"Sorry to keep you waiting, Lady Juleka" Onyx rushes into the throne room and comes to a halt when he sees his lady crying. "Lady Juleka whatever is the matter?" His Black Panther ears that appeared on top of his hair twitched as his eyes rounded.
"Nathanael deceived me and fled with that man" She wipes away the tears rushing down her face.
Onyx frowns.
"Seize him for me!" Juleka orders. "Do not allow him to escape"
Onyx bows "As you wish my lady" he straightens up and rushes out of the throne room.
Nathanael pants as they reach the middle of the thickening forest "We should be okay now we've got this far out" he looks around at the endless line of trees that surround them. "We should hurry and return to the surface" he takes out a talisman "I've gotten more confident in my divine powers so I'll have this talisman show us the way out," he writes on it then turns to Felix only to gasp.
Felix had collapsed across the ground. "Felix, what's wrong?" Nathanael rushes and kneels down beside him. The man pushes himself up from the ground "I just felt dizzy" he stands up followed by Nathanael.
"Hanae told me the human body can rot when in contact with the underworlds air" Nathanael frowns. Felix walks on with Nathanael following.
"It wouldn't be an issue if it was only that" Felix replies. "I found out that while I'm in contact with any part of a deity's body, the underworlds poison won't eat away at me. So I took a lock of your hair while you were sleeping" he holds up his wrist to see the hair tied around it.
"Oh that's great" Nathanael smiles then pauses "Wait what!?" he grabs his hair to see it had been messily cut. His eyes round in horror.
"It saved me from having to hold your hand while walking" Felix turns and starts walking on again.
Nathanael frowns "Well, Okay but if you're having a hard time don't push it and let me know" then he gasps grabbing Felix's arm and pulling him behind some foliage to hide. "Someone is around us"
"Um, testing, testing! 1,2,3!" Onyx stands on a cliff overlooking the forest speaking into a megaphone. A small army of demons stands behind him. "Human God and Man I know you are out there!"
"If you do not show yourselves in five minutes, I, Onyx, Lady Juleka's familiar will burn you to ashes along with the forest!" twisted delight flashes in his eyes.
Nathanael gasps. Felix remains calm. "If he plans to set the whole forest ablaze that means he hasn't pinpointed our location yet" he mutters.
"We need to get out of here!" Nathanael looks to Felix in concern. He activates the talisman in his hands putting his power into it. 'Talisman, please…show us the way to the exit!' it flies out of Nathanael's hands and into the sky above the trees.
Nathanael and Felix run after trying to stay as silent as they can. Nathanael's eyes widen as his footing slips and he heads to the ground when Felix catches him by his collar pulling him up and pushing him on.
'Lila, what should I do?' Nathanael calls in his mind wondering if he can reach her 'Lila!'
On the cliff, Onyx smirks "That's five minutes, start the fire!" he gestures to the demons behind him. A few steps forward with arrows on fire. They shoot them into the forest below hitting trees that light up in crackling fire. Then the remaining demons push forward a large catapult with a flaming fireball on the launcher. They launch it and it lands in the forest which bursts into flames slowly starting to devour all around it.
Nathanael glances behind him and sees the fire that will soon reach him. He takes his talisman and frantically scribbles on it. "Max headwind!" he displays it and the wind comes from it growing larger and pushing the fire in the opposite direction.
"That should give us some time!" Nathanael says. He runs on with Felix following. 'Lila isn't here to tell what I should do, so I have to look after myself!'
Felix runs ahead but then comes to a stop. Nathanael catches up with him then frowns "What's wrong?"
"Your talisman stops here" he points to the ground.
Nathanael picks it up and bites his lips "Was my divine power not strong enough?"
"No, this place seems familiar" Felix glances around "This is where we started out so we must be near the entrance"
"Really?" Nathanael's eyes dart around "Was it always this dark?"
Felix looks up "There was light from the surface shining through the hole back then" he forehead creases "Seems like someone has closed it up"
"So we're trapped!" Nathanael shrieks.
Meanwhile back on the surface
The war God sits on top of a large boulder he had pushed over the entrance to the underworld.
"Hey, You. Move aside!" Lila stands in the air with Nooroo clinging to her kimono against the wind. "I have business below"
The war God narrows his eyes "Long time no see, Fox"
"I have no interest in you" she lowers herself to the ground.
"So you wish to go to the Underworld, what a shame" The war God smirks "I sealed this hole with a new barrier boulder"
"Move the rock aside" Lila growls. "My master is still inside"
"If you consider that boy a God he can surely come out on his own" He frowns "If he is not a God then he is just a simple human being which means he will be long dead, attempting to rescue him would be a waste of time"
Her eyes blazed with fury as she shouted "Move aside!" she flings a Foxfire at the God. It does nothing. The God sits there emotionless "Did you honestly think a mere familiar like you could defeat a God?"
The God throws blue lighting at Lila it hits her and she falls to the ground. He stands up and jumps to the ground, towering over the kitsune. "In all likelihood, you are using that boy for your own purposes just as you once did"
Lila's eyebrows furrow.
The God collects all his power in a swarming blue ball in his hand. "I will do away with you here, once more, as befitting of a fox"
"Please wait a moment, War God!" Nooroo jumps in between the God and the Kitsune. "Even if she is a fox, Lady Lila is an excellent familiar!" Tears filled the butterfly's eyes. "I beg of you…I beg of you!" Lila places a hand on Nooroo's head giving him a gentle pat.
"Nooroo" the spirit looks up at her. "It is exactly as he said as long as I am a familiar I am powerless against his wrath that is how it is" she smiles down at Nooroo.
"I understand, Lady Lila" Nooroo smiles and takes the lucky mallet he had tied to his back. Swinging it in his hands he brings it towards Lila.
"I shall have you join your Master in death!" the war god rages more power building up around him.
"Revert to Yokai!" Nooroo declares as the mallet reaches Lila. The God lets his power go heading straight to the Kitsune. There is a burst of blue light. It is blocked and when the dust clears Lila stands there in full yokai form. Her hair reached her ankles, a wild glint in her eyes as she smirks at the war God.
"The contract is now broken" Nooroo states "But even so Lila will continue to be a faithful familiar to the mikage shrine"
"Ugh, you damn yokai fox"
Nathanael searches for another talisman. He finds a crumpled one deep in his pocket. He straightens it out and writes on it. Throwing it into the air. "Entrance to the underworld: Open!" it hits the top of the sky and lets out a golden flash then falls to the ground.
"It didn't work!" Nathanael rakes his hands through his hair. "What am I going to do now?" he looks to Felix who is sitting on the ground leaning against a rock, breathing heavily from the fever overtaking him.
He can hear the approaching fire and demons drawing closer. His time was running out. "Felix, run away as far as you can, I'll distract them so you can escape"
"How?" Felix looks up.
"It'll be okay, I should have one talisman left" he looks around with a hopeful smile "We should be getting back to the surface really soon, hang in there Felix" he then runs towards the approaching fire and army.
Felix's eyes widen. 'What can he do with just one talisman?' he rubs his forehead 'Damn my head is spinning, what the hell is wrong with this body?' he clenches a fist 'I hate having to run away like a coward but I must get back to the surface and regroup for now' He glances down at the hair tied around his wrist 'No matter I can always come back to the underworld safely with the use of his hair, I no longer need that boy' He pauses when he thinks of how selfless the boy had been for him.
Nathanael runs on through the trees. 'I'll get away as far as I can and stall so Felix can escape, I have to do this myself! I have to!"
"Found you!"
He looks around to see a large black panther launch itself at him. He gasps. Then bright light bursts in the sky. Nathanael shields his eyes as the Panther is flung to the ground. 'Light?' He glances up and his eyes widen.
"Nathanael!" Lila reaches out to him.
Tears fill his eyes and he reaches up to her "Lila!" she wraps him in a hug that he gratefully returns. "I missed you"
"Are you alright?" she asks.
"Yeah" Nathanael buries his face in her shoulder as he cries.
"Thank goodness, I was so worried" she runs her finger through his hair. The panther now in humanoid form tries to sneak off but Lila is too quick for him sending a blast of fox fire at him.
"So Nathanael why did you go all the way to miss the divine assembly just to play with a cat in the underworld, could you explain that to me?" Lila asks.
Nathanael's face flushes as he feels how long Lila's hair had grown 'Was it always this long? Somethings different'
From some rocks a little above the tree, Felix watches with narrowed eyes. 'It's been a long time' he remembers all that happened between them and Lila's betrayal "A very long time, Lila"
Nathanael glances up spotting Felix. He smiles and waves for him to come down.
"It is approaching sunset" Nooroo mutters as he sits outside waiting for Lila's return with Nathanael. "I hope Lady Lila found her way to Lord Nathanael safely"
There is a flash of light from the entrance making Nooroo look around. "Nooroo!" Nathanael smiles.
The Shrine spirit grins happily. "Lord Nathanael you have returned!" he swiftly flies into Nathanael's arms as they hug. "It is so good to see you safe"
"Thanks so much for coming," Nathanael says. 'I'm so glad I made it back to the surface with Felix' he glances around for Felix then sees him unconscious across the ground with Lila leaning over him, curiously.
"W-What are you doing?" Nathanael exclaims rushing over and grabbing Lila's shoulder.
"I brought him along cause he happened to be there but who is this man exactly?" her eyes narrow "He appears human but there is no life in him almost as if he were dead"
Felix cracks open an eye unbeknownst to the Kitsune who smirks "If so, I could just drop him back into the underworld" Then Nathanael collapses across Lila's back all his exhaustion catching up with him as he fell asleep.
"Nathanael!" Lila turns to him moving him into her arms "What's wrong?" Nooroo flutters closer "Nathanael?"
"He is asleep" Lila mutters as she gazes down at his peaceful sleeping face. Then she gasps as a cold dagger is clutched to her throat. "Who is this boy to you?" Felix asks, his voice cold.
Lila is able to get away from him, grabbing his wrist, twisting it and then ducking away, all while keeping hold of Nathanael. Felix manages to cut her hand. She glances down at the cut and smirks. Simply licking the blood away.
"So this is the thanks I get for saving you?"
"Not at all" Felix laughs, but it hollow and does not reach his eyes that are narrowed in rage "This is hardly enough to repay you in full, but I am exhausted so you will have to wait" smoke billows around him. Akuma and Mara jump along beside him. "Later!" they both say. They disappear.
"Shikigami, huh?" Lila mutters.
"Who was that man?" Nooroo asks.
"He is of small importance, ignore him," she says "We will head to the grand shrine, I will carry Nathanael there" she looks down at the sleeping boy and pushes his bang out of his face allowing her to see his full face. The man's question echoes in her mind: "Who is this boy to you?" She pauses. If someone were to ask that any other time she would easily reply he was just the God she had to serve but now she did not know how she would answer.
"Lady Lila is everything alright?" Nooroo asks.
She composes herself and nods "Of course, everything is just fine"
"Ah, I feel so revived!" Nathanael says as he finishes the soup "I have had nothing to eat or drink for two days, so this really is the best!" Yeshua turns around a few time before settling beside Nathanael on the mattress.
"I guess you went and prepared a room for me while I was away, Aurore" he looks around the lavish bedroom. It felt like being in a hotel for royalty which he guessed it kind of was.
Aurore did not look as happy as Nathanael, she crouched in the corner with her head down. "But this pains me to no end. I was the one who came with you yet Lila is the one who came to your rescue"
Nathanael's eyes dart about "Where is Lila? She is the one who carried me back here so she should still be in Izumo"
Aurore's face pales "Er, well…she's went out for a stroll, perhaps…"
"Oh, Okay" he smiles "You know I feel as if I had been trapped down there for a month" he pauses "Aurore, what day of the divine assembly is it?"
"It is the sixth day" a voice outside the room loudly declares. The doors burst open the room fills with gold smoke and when it clears Ali is there on his throne. "I had grown tired of waiting, Nathanael, returning to me three days late is quite a feat" he shakes his head "Not to worry I didn't expect a human God to be able to complete such a task in three days"
Nathanael gets out of his bed but then trips over the blankets landing on his knees.
"I have already heard all about your adventure in the underworld, thanks to that I've been getting an endless stream of complaints"
Nathanael pales "I'm so sorry!"
"All is well" he grins and in his hand appears the lucky mallet "Besides, my missing lucky mallet was returned to me so I shall overlook your tardiness" his eyes narrow "However, The fox's actions cannot be overlooked for she used the lucky mallet to revert back into a yokai, she shall be kept in the east prison until her punishment is decided"
Nathanael's eyes widen in horror "What?"
"I shall deal with Lila while you can commit yourself to the last two days of the divine assembly," Ali says.
Nathanael stands up clenching his fists "Prison, but why?" he approaches the God in his throne "Lila is my familiar I will not allow-"
Ali holds a hand up quieting Nathanael "But she is not your Familiar anymore, the contract between the two of you has been broken, she has returned to being a dangerous wild fox, I cannot let her run loose"
Nathanael growls and practically kicks the door open as he storms out of his room and turns towards the east prison.
"Are you going to visit that wild fox, Nathanael? I strongly advise against such a thing" Ali says.
"You do realise he is long gone" Aurore points out.
"How it breaks my heart to see you here, Lady Lila!" Nooroo weeps outside the Prison bars "Trapped in a cage like some animal!"
"Shut up!" Lila's ears flatten against her head "You're giving me a headache with your whining" she sits with her back to the prison bars "Besides it is a good thing I am locked up, as a familiar I was able to exercise strong self-control but it appears I struggle with that in this form" she closes her eyes. 'I thought I only protected him because I was a familiar but…'
"Lila!"
Her eyes open at that familiar voice. She stands up.
"Lord Nathanael?" Nooroo says.
"Nooroo" Nathanael smiles he looks to the cell opposite the spirit and can make out Lila. The kitsune was walking away from the bars. "Lila, I heard from Lord Ali you were being kept here" he runs up to the bars, his hands clutching them as he looks through one of the squares.
"Are you okay?" he asks "They didn't hurt you or anything?"
Lila turns her back to him. He notices the cut on her hand "What happened your hand, you're injured!"
"You are missing the divine assembly, for what purpose have you come here?" she asks, still refusing to look at him.
Nathanael's eyebrows furrow "I-I came to make you a familiar again" his face flushes "You don't want to be stuck in this place forever, do you?"
"That is none of your business"
Nathanael's eyes go round at her answer.
"It is my choice whether I become a familiar again or not," she says "Allow me some time to make that decision"
His expression dulled but still, he nodded "I understand" he walked to back to the entrance then paused looking back around "I'll try to negotiate with Lord Ali for your release" with that he turned and left the prison. The air once again filling with silence. Lila walked over to the farthest corner and sunk down to the ground.
The doors closed behind Nathanael and then he finally sunk to the ground, eyes filling with tears. 'Lila is…' he covered his face with his hands 'Lila is…'
"There you are, Lord Nathanael!" A rabbit guard grabs him by his sleeve "The sixth day is starting and you have a lot of work to catch up on!"
As Nathanael emotionlessly makes the Ema (small wooden plaques) he had been tasked to do. His thoughts fully on Lila. 'I wonder did Lila find it hard to be a familiar?' he picks up his first finished batch to leave up to the main table. 'Has it ever felt like a burden to her?'
'If either of those are true I have to think long and hard about this too' he leaves the main hall and walks along the outside corridor 'So I can manage even if Lila ends up leaving the shrine' He stops walking as he thinks that thought tears glimmering in his eyes. He shakes his head so he doesn't cry. 'Is there anything I can do other than to beg her not to leave?' he looks heavenward.
He walks on carrying the bundle of ema's. He turns and enters a room. "Excuse me, about these matchmaking ema's"
He looks down and shrieks when he sees the war God across the ground, singed and unconscious.
"Settle down"
He looks to see another God sitting on mat crossed leg and eating some sort of large peach bun. "The war God is currently recovering from his injuries, the peach pill, my miracle cure will heal all his wounds, you see"
Nathanael takes in this information then gasps "Do you mind sharing some of that medicine with me?"
"In exchange for what?"
Nathanael pales.
"Don't tell you were expecting free medicine?"
"Uh well," Nathanael rubs the back of his neck "How about the legendary limited edition delicacy, the peach flavoured sweet potato doughnut?" he takes a talisman from his pocket with a hopeful smile.
"Peach flavoured doughnut" the Gods mouth watered at the thought.
'For Lila, I've found something I can do'
"Oh?"
Lila peeks open an eye to see Aurore slipping into the cage using her snake abilities. "You're still caged up I see" Aurore smirks. "How long do you intend to stay shut in here?"
She frowns. "Why are you here?" she props herself up on her elbow. "Begone, I wish to be alone" she flops back down on her back and closes her eyes once more.
A crushing silence appears in the dungeons once more. Then Aurore sighs "I heard you wanted to quit being a familiar"
Lila sits up and looks up to the small cell window, moonlight casting across her features. She makes no reply to Aurore's comment.
"That made Nathanael really sad you know" she folds her arms "I'd prefer if you didn't cause my master too much grief"
Lila puts her head in her hands, long strands of brown hair falling over her shoulders and hiding her face from view. "Nathanael's smile gave me comfort when I was a familiar" she mutters "I always kept track of his whereabouts and rushed to his side in times of need. Even when he wasn't there, there wasn't a day when I did not think of Nathanael but that was because I was a familiar…" she pauses "At least I thought it was but even now I cannot get him out of my head" she pushed her hair back and looks to Aurore wide-eyed "Do you know why that may be?"
Aurore rolls her eyes "I must say Lila for all the ways you try to act so smart you know very little about the ways of the world"
"What's that meant to mean?" Lila snaps back.
Aurore smiles knowingly as she rests her back against the cell door "At this point, Nathanael is just a normal boy you fell for"
Lila's eyes go round as she processes that information. Aurore bites back a laugh and walks towards her "And with that mystery solved" she reaches into her pocket taking out a small jar of pink pills "Here you go, a parting gift from Nathanael. They are peach pills from the God of health and healing he wished for you to have them"
Lila looks down to the jar Aurore holds out to her with wide eyes then her features fall as her eyes cloud over.
'We may go our separate ways now but I don't want her getting hurt along her way, she does have a lot of enemies so I want her to have something to keep her safe'
Nathanael lay asleep in his bed his room cast in darkness until the door silently opened letting in a few rays of light. Lila entered the room and padded across the room towards the bed. She places the pills by his pillow "I cannot accept these" she whispers.
She looks down at his sleeping face with furrowed eyebrows 'Have I fallen in love with Nathanael? She leans over him 'How am I meant to know?' she reaches and stroked a hand through his hair.
"Lila" Nathanael murmurs in his sleep.
Her eyes widen.
"…Don't go"
Her features relaxed as a small smile graced her lips. She slowly leaned down and placed a kiss on his lips. A white glow surrounded them before vanishing. The familiar contract had been sealed once again.
'Then…I really have fallen for Nathanael…" she thinks to herself as she fixes the blankets that had started to fall off the bed.
Lila, with her hair now cut back to its waist length kneels before Lord Ali with her head bowed. He glowers down at her as a line of Rabbit guards stand on each side of the room.
He finally talks "I have decided…" his voice low. "Since…now it appears there are extenuating circumstances I have no choice but to let you go free…but I cannot let you go free without punishment…"
"I'm so happy you're back to being a familiar" Nathanael grins as he sits down at the breakfast table. Lila says nothing continuing to work at the aisle preparing breakfast, her back to Nathanael. "And…you came into my room last night didn't you?"
Lila freezes in the middle of slicing mushrooms "So you were awake?"
Nathanael shakes his head "No…" his face turns crimson "I dreamed about it…and um in the dream you kinda sort of kissed me"
"Never mind that!" Lila pushes a bowl into the side of his face to shut him up "You must eat now, today is rice porridge with your favourite mushrooms" a sadistic smile appears on her face as Nathanael stares down at the breakfast with narrowed eyes of disgust.
"I made sure to put lots in because I know how much you love them" Lila smirks.
Nathanael glares up at her "You're such a jerk"
Lila turns around heading back to the kitchen aisle 'This is a problem…when Nathanael begins to blush while speaking about his feelings for me I cannot help but want to be cruel to him…what's wrong with me?'
She is pouring out some tea while Aurore enters Nathanael's quarters carrying her blankets and pillows "Hey Nathanael is it okay if I start sleeping in your room?"
Nathanael looks up forgetting about being mad at Lila "Huh, Why?"
"Well," Aurore pouts "Whenever I was serving Lady Ondine she always let me sleep in her room while at the assembly but now that she's not here I feel so lonely!"
Nathanael, being a soft-hearted fool, felt sad for the snake familiar "Oh, well then okay-"
"You cannot!" Lila growls turning around with a fierce glare.
"I didn't ask you!" Aurore snaps back "Besides there's plenty of room"
"She's right," Nathanael says "I don't see what the big issue is"
Lila crosses her arms "Familiars have their own sleeping chambers" her tail swayed in annoyance "It is the rules"
Nathanael grins "I know, what about if you sleep in there with us too, all three of us!"
The cup in Lila's hand smashes to pieces "I said No and that's the end of it!" 'He doesn't even realise what he's saying!'
Nathanael carries the bundle of ema's in his arms to the main hall not paying attention to his surroundings as he is lost in thought. 'Lila's in such a bad mood today, I wonder did she actually not want to be a familiar again?' he sighs.
"Lord Ali may actually be soft-hearted after all" Noorro says as he sits beside Lila at the koi pond. She is throwing in special pellets to feed them. "Charging you to feed the koi and calling it water under the bridge is a very kind punishment"
"Lila!"
She looks around to see Nathanael running up.
"I've finally been given a break so do you want to go sightseeing?" he smiles brightly.
They walk along a busy street back in the human world. "I've been in the world of the god's ever since I got here" Nathanael says as he looks through a visitor book for Izumo "so I haven't had time to go sightseeing in Izumo at all" he looks up and gasps "Wow, the grand shrine here in the mundane world is super busy too!"
"Obviously," Lila says beside him "They are celebrating the God's in residence festival right now"
"We should go too," Nathanael says. He grabs onto her sleeve and pulls her along through the crowds.
After visiting the main shrine the duo stopped by a small restaurant to get lunch.
"It's so fun visiting a matchmaking shrine and now we're having lunch" he smiles "It almost like we're on a date"
Lila's eyes widen at his words. "Nathanael…do you still have feelings for me" Lila places her head in the palm of her hand.
Nathanael freezes "What?" his cheeks turn as red as his hair. "I…well, of course"
Lila looks to the side 'Oh, but it is different from before…' "I see" she replies.
"But it's okay!" Nathanael says, he rubs the back of his neck "I know it's one-sided you don't have the same kind of feelings for me and that's totally fine" he chuckles "I won't freak out on you because I think I can change how you feel and you don't have to freak out on me"
Lila's eyes rounded as her smile slipped, her mind conflicted with Nathanael's words.
Nathanael quickly moved on from the conversation picking up the sauce "So I just put this into the-" his sentence is cut off as stuck up lady bangs into Nathanael's chair causing him to spill the sauce over his shirt.
"Excuse me!" she says in a snobby manner not even bothering to cast a glance at Nathanael.
He frowns.
Back in the land of the God's Nathanael pulls out all his clothes from his suitcase throwing the ones he didn't need on the ground. "I knew I should have packed my other one!" he complains. "Hey, would you think the God's would consider me rude if I show up to the assembly in a t-shirt?" Nathanael asks pulling out a black t-shirt with a skull motif on it.
"How would I know?" Lila rolls her eyes looking down at her nails "This is why I tell you to always be prepared, panicking does not help either so-" she cuts off as she looks up to see Nathanael already unbuttoning his shirt.
"What are you doing?" she looks away as she feels a furious heat appearing on her face.
He glances over his shoulder with a raised eyebrow "I'm changing my shirt…"
"What male in their right mind starts undressing in front of a female?" Lila looks away from Nathanael's direct gaze to hide her red face.
"Uh…" More confusion appeared on Nathanael's face "It's just my shirt…I didn't think it mattered…"
"Well, it does!" Lila puts her hands on her hips "You should have a little modesty and be more aware!" her eyes still darted about unable to look him directly in the eye.
He frowns "You don't have to yell at me about it!" his forehead creases "What's your deal? You've been acting weird all day!"
"That is completely you're doing!" Lila retorts "Think about it, just this morning you talked about sleeping in the same room as that damn snake, you lack discretion what if she were to force herself on you as she did before!" Lila turns around.
"Yeah, well what if you didn't worry so much!" Nathanael yells back "Besides that's why I suggested that you sleep in the room too!"
"Enough of this already!" Lila whips around a seething glare in her eyes "do you honestly have so-called feelings for me?" she growls "If your content in just spouting nonsense go recite it to a wall!"
Nathanael's eyes widened welling up with tears and then the dam broke as they all came pouring out. "W-why are you mad, Lila?" he sobs "I don't understand what I did or why you're so upset" he sniffs "Please explain it to me"
Lila's eyes rounded as she realises she had been too harsh. She bites on her lower lip guilty the sighs.
"Whatever I did, I promise to never do it again" he cries, looking to the ground.
Lila comes closer and places a hand gently on his head "I'm very sorry Nathanael" she pulls him closer and he rests his head on her chest as he cries. "I was unbelievably wrong, please do not let this concern you"
"Here you will catch a cold if you remain in this wet shirt" she pulls at the fabric "I will remove it for you" she pulls it down from his shoulders.
Nathanael's eyes widen and his face swiftly heats up in a red blush "N-No! Its O-Okay I-I can do it" he tries to back away.
Lila doesn't let go of her grip on the fabric "You do not have to though" her voice is sweet but her eyes told a different story as they glinted dangerously. "It is a familiar's duty to look after her Lord and Master" Lila smiles "What is wrong? You said yourself it doesn't matter, am I not correct?"
She moves forward and Nathanael gasps he is pushed on the bed Lila over him as she grips his wrists pushing them into the mattress "And tonight by your request I will stay by your side the entire evening, I am a familiar so there should be nothing wrong with that"
Nathanael stares up a mixture of fear and shock in his eyes. Then Lila releases her grip on his wrists and sits up "Well Nathanael, do you still think this is okay?" she smirks victoriously, tail wagging happily.
Nathanael eyes rounded as he realises what she had been up to. "Go to Hell, Lila!" he screams as he kicks her roughly off the bed.
"Why do you think Foxes don't consider possible consequences, Lila?" Aurore asks as they are both squeezed into the single bed in Aurore's room. The snake familiar is looking at the bare wall with a fed up expression "Oh this isn't about you, by the way, it's about this other friend I have who is also a fox"
Lila makes no reply already lost in her own thoughts. 'I don't know what to do about these feelings…I know I can't tell him…'
"Oi, Lila, at least have the respect to listen to me complain without falling asleep"
At last the final day of the divine assembly came. Nathanael used his paintbrush to add the final letter to his last ema. "There all done!" he sighed in relief.
"Make way for someone greater!" Hanae pushes Gods out of her way as she heads towards Nathanael's workstation. "Hey there you are"
"Oh, Hello Hanae," Nathanael says.
"Here I got you a gift for finishing all your tasks for the divine assembly" she holds out a gift bag.
"Thank you" he accepts the bag "What about your work?"
"I was done days ago" Hanae laughs "It's a good thing I've got such a serious familiar"
Nathanael blinks "Your familiars are allowed to help?"
"Obviously, why else would we bring them along?" Hanae smiles.
Nathanael feels like hitting himself as he realises how fast he could have been done if he had got Aurore and Lila's help. "Anyway how has the divine assembly been for you, I hope you learned some new things"
"I did!" Nathanael grins picking up one of his finished ema's "A person's destiny is one thread and that single destiny is linked together with other people's destinies"
"That's right" Hanae nods "They intertwine and create bonds all things are linked from the past to the present day" Hanae smiles softly "There are steps leading to every encounter one will have which means that even you talking to me right now is the result of something that's been long in the making"
Hanae claps her hands bringing everyone's attention to her "Now then everyone, hurry up and finish your work so we can start the banquet early!"
Nathanael stacks his work inside the crate beside him. 'I hope I've managed to fulfil your duties the way you would have Lady Rose'
"I think I'm ready" Nathanael steps out from his room "Lady Hanae got me this to wear at the banquet but I'm not sure I put it on correctly" he was wearing a traditional male kimono for a festival.
"It looks a bit big on you" Aurore comments.
"Incompetent"
Nathanael frowns and looks to Lila.
"You cannot attend the banquet looking like that" she shakes her head "I will dress you, strip"
Nathanael's face goes pale and Lila freezes eyes widening as she realises what she had said.
"N-No, I'll just ask Yeshua for help" he swiftly escapes back to his room shutting the door.
Lila sinks to the floor near Aurore head in her hands.
"You realise you're an idiot don't you?" the snake quips "Tell how does it feel, I'm curious to know what that's like"
Lila glances up "You've been awfully quarrelsome of late, snake"
"Yeah, well it's because I don't find this funny" she looks to Lila with narrowed eyes "The last thing I want is to lose the lord and master that I've finally found don't get carried away and elope with him or anything, okay?"
Lila's eyes widen and then she composes herself looking away "Don't worry I have no intentions of involving myself with the likes of a human"
"Hmm, keep telling yourself that"
"This is amazing!" Nathanael gushes as he looks around the area filled with glowing lanterns, parasols are dotted about to shade the Gods sitting around on brightly coloured carpets and cushions.
"Hello my dear fans" Hanae smirks walking up to the three of them, Gatta following behind in her humanoid form carrying the little Pomeranian dog, Riceball in her arms. "I must say you actually don't look half bad in that"
"Hanae, thank you for the kimono!" Nathanael says.
"It's no bother, in fact, it's a relief after all those tacky clothes you wore I thought you were a lost cause" she giggles.
Nathanael's smile slips
"Lord Human God" a soft voice speaks up. Nathanael looks down to see a tiny moon rabbit holding out a tray with a glass "Your hard work at the divine assembly is appreciated"
"Sake?" Nathanael says. He picks it up.
"It is a sake cup from Lord Ali, go on drink it"
Nathanael hesitates 'I don't want to be rude' he slowly raises it to his lips when suddenly he is stopped as Lila takes it from him. "Nathanael cannot drink yet I shall have it instead" she drinks it much to everyone's horror.
She looks around at their shocked faces in confusion "What?"
Hanae backs away with her familiar "Have the decency to blush, why don't you?"
"Huh?" Lila looks around "What did I do?"
'This is why I really want to kill Lila sometimes' Aurore grumbles to herself. She slings an arm around Lila's shoulders making the fox be pulled down to her level "Nothing at all, I just want a drink now too"
As the snake and the fox are distracted Nathanael notices the same white butterfly that had helped him at the beginning of the divine assembly 'It's here' He chases after weaving around the crowds.
'I was right, it was you!" he comes to a halt at the edge of the crowds where a petite blonde sits under the shade of a pink parasol.
"Hello, it appears we meet again, Mr Kurtzberg" she smiles.
"Hello" he bows his head "Thank you very much for helping me out of the darkness, Lady Rose"
The butterfly flutters to the Goddess landing on her open palm and then flashing once before disappearing. "Your efforts here are appreciated, you're a whole different person compared to a week ago. You did great work, Lord Nathanael"
Nathanael's eyes rounded and he smiles "Nothing could make me happier than hearing you say that"
"I'm grateful to you for being good to Lila," Rose says "Thank you, please keep looking after her for me"
"Huh?" Nathanael smile falls "But does that mean you're not going to see Lila?" he frowns "She won't say it so many words but she misses you very much"
Rose bows her head "I can't do that yet, if I were to visit Lila now it would make my 20 years of absence a waste until she completely ceases to need me I have no intention of seeing her"
Nathanael looks to the ground "I see…"
"Nathanael, do you know why love between a human and a yokai is considered taboo?"
Nathanael looks up "No I don't"
"The reason humans can fall in love over and over again is because their hearts change with time, the human lifespan is short they do not have the time to be bound down by one attachment" Rose explains "But it is different for the yokai kind, they live for a very long time so their souls do not waver and they never forget, they can endure with the same love for centuries and so their feelings will not change without good reason there are many who grow old without ever loving another" Rose says "But to love someone and to need that person is a highly risky proposition for the yokai kind that was certainly true for Lila"
"Of course" Nathanael avoids Rose's gaze "You must be talking about the man named Haruto"
"Yes" Rose smiles "Lila has quite a bit of history behind her as well but I have used my powers to make her forget her past temporarily though I'm sure you understand things can't stay this way forever"
Nathanael is shocked at this information but manages to find his voice "Then why did you bring me and Lila together?"
Lila wanders along the pathways looking around in concern for Nathanael.
"Lila believes that humans are fleeting and frail creatures because of this she fears becoming involved with them"
Lila moves on then comes to a halt, eyes widening as she sees just ahead Nathanael talking to a familiar figure.
"I think you can teach him humans are not as weak as she believes they may be," Rose says "My goal is to rekindle her bond with humanity, to have him take your hand and not mine. I want to give her the opportunity to choose you"
Nathanael's eyes widen. Then he hears running footsteps behind him. He glances over his shoulder to see Lila hurrying towards them "Rose!"
"But she still has a long way to go" Rose chuckles and then her body glows before vanishing completely. Lila reaches too late and stares to the sky with glossy eyes. Nathanael watches her in concern.